Holy Innocents’ Episcopal Church last month completed renovations to accommodate its growth in members, as well as serve as a resource to the community.

“The new facility makes ministry much more possible than our old facility,” said the Rev. Michael Sullivan, the church’s rector. “It also allows our church to be a resource to the city in a way that we weren’t before. We desire to be a contributor to public life in Sandy Springs so that Holy Innocents’ is not just a building, but a resource to everyone.”

The new facility is 33,000 square feet and will provide space for meetings, offices and events.

Renovations began in spring 2011, but Sullivan said the process began about three years ago.

“The outside of the building saw the most dramatic changes,” he said. “The roof was replaced and the outside brick was replaced with stone. Many of the original architectural details that were lost were restored to bring the church back to its original state.”

Holy Innocents’ originated downtown in 1872 as a mission Sunday school to serve widowed women and orphaned children in Atlanta after the Civil War, but was moved to Sandy Springs in 1954, according to Sullivan. The church now serves about 2,500 members and 900 families.

The renovated building now includes a glass-paneled Christ Chapel with skylights, a gallery which will feature rotating art exhibits, the Frost Youth Center, Bresinger Hall performance and rehearsal space and Bishop Commons, a multipurpose gathering space at the main entry, according to a news release.

The Rev. J. Neil Alexander, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, blessed the newly renovated building Oct. 7 and the church hosted an open house Oct. 21.

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